Saving the Northern White Rhino - With Hybrids?

So, they developed assisted reproductive technologies, which helped with the creation of two hybrid white rhino embryos consisting of a genetic mix of the NWR and its closely related cousin, the Southern White Rhino (SWR), the Washington Post reported.

They successfully implanted an embryo of a rhino into this female rhino, named Hope, at the Berlin Zoo. Then they put them in test tubes and fertilized the eggs using frozen sperm collected from now-dead Northern White Rhino males.

The first rhinoceros embryo created in vitro can help to save the subspecies, the Northern white Rhino from the brink of extinction.

Sudan, the northern white rhino's last male - once called the "most eligible bachelor in the world" by the dating app Tinder - died in March.

The two surviving members of the northern white species - a mother and daughter called Najin and Fatu who live in Kenya's Ol Pejeta Conservancy - can not bear offspring, which is why a southern white surrogate is needed.

"Our results indicate that ART (assisted reproduction techniques) could be a viable strategy to rescue genes from the iconic, nearly extinct, northern white rhinoceros", the team wrote in the journal Nature Communications. As there were very few frozen NWR eggs exist, the scientists started to create hybrid embryos and see how the technique works.

Zoologist say that due to the fact that the number of genuine reproduction material of northern white rhinos is limited to four individual donors, this dramatically narrows down the base required to create a viable population for maintaining sufficient genetic diversity. "Now we are well prepared to go to Kenya and collect oocytes from the last two NWR females in order to produce pure NWR blastocysts where both eggs and sperm are from NWR", Hildebrandt comments. But the same method could soon be used with eggs taken from the surviving northern rhinos in captivity in Africa.

Ruthless Federer marches on at Wimbledon
It is the biggest win of Pella's career and he is now in the third round of a Grand Slam for the first time. Open runner-up meant she became the seventh casualty in the top 10 women's seeds before the middle weekend.

Cristiano Ronaldo Agrees €100m Juventus Move
He hinted he would be leaving this summer when he said: "It was very nice to be at Real Madrid ". Juve's problem is not Ronaldo, it's putting together the defence and the midfield .

Could this bring back the northern white rhino?

For example, in 2011 scientists from the SCRIPPS Institute in La JOLLA (USA) created the first stem cells of the extinct Northern white rhinos and endangered species of baboons-drylaw using samples of their frozen tissues. The good news, Hildebrandt tells the New York Times' Yin, is that researchers have a genetically diverse collection of cells to draw from and have already created 12 of these "reprogrammed" cells (albeit no egg or sperm cells).

"To me if we have a chance to save them I do not understand why we should not - I do not want to witness northern white rhinos disappear in front of our eyes just because we did not care". They predict, after developing the proper technique, it will be possible to transfer the embryos to female southern white rhinoceroses in the coming years. "In fact, half of the genetic information of this hybrid embryo comes from the white northern rhinoceros, which is an unbelievable success", Rabas was quoted as saying.

There have been previous attempts by conservation scientists to save the rhino species.

The combination of stem cell research with newly developed artificial insemination technology provides scientists with a way to save critically endangered mammalian species.

ART was created by a team led by Cesare Galli, a veterinarian, and embryologist working at Avantea, a biotechnology laboratory in Italy.

"They have formally said they will give us the necessary support", he said.

Shares of Micron, which fell 5.5 percent on Tuesday after the ban, was up 1.9 percent at $52.46 in afternoon trading on Thursday. Fujian Jinhua also issued a statement on Tuesday saying the court had ruled against Micron.

Thirty-year-old Timmy Kinner is facing nine counts of aggravated battery and six counts of injury to a child. The stabbing Saturday night at a Boise apartment complex left three adults and five other children injured.

England , as I say, were by no means faultless in their conduct in Moscow but to suggest they were the main culprits is laughable. It's been absolutely obvious, too obvious". "That's a great thing for a team to have".

Japan is totally different to Wales [who knocked Belgium out of Euro 2016], and we'll take this as seriously as possible. While firm favourites Brazil lock horns with underdogs Mexico, Belgium face a risky Japan in the matches on Monday.

Trump's tweet , however, mentioned no time frame for the additional 2 million barrels - whether it meant per day or per month. Mr Trump took another swing at his European allies saying they dealt unfairly with the USA over trade.

Strauss for anything, you would have to pull your trousers down", and that Jordan was present when this was discussed . The law firm Perkins Coie was hired by Porter Wright to conduct an independent investigation into Strauss's behavior.

Zalmanov said Maxtech had managed to set up a wireless communication system in "almost no time" upon reaching the site. In the nearly 5-minute clip, the boys are illuminated by torchlight while a diver can be heard speaking to them.

Before he was traded by the Indiana Pacers to the Thunder, George had expressed his intention to play for the Lakers. Russ is not LeBron James , or any of the other stars the Lakers are convinced they will add to their roster.

Melo struggled to adapt to a new role as a power forward last season and as a lesser cog in his team's offense. Anthony would have the option of joining a number of contenders if he becomes a free agent this offseason.

The Washington Post reported us intelligence officials believe North Korea does not intend to fully give up its nuclear stockpile. Sinuiju is between Dandong and the Apnok River and serves as a hub of China-North Korea trade.

Heavy-hearted Murray pulls out of Wimbledon
Murray also wrote that he would start practicing on the hard courts right on Monday, with a view to a full return during the U.S. Kate, a lifelong tennis fan, often shows her support to Andy Murray and has even watched him play at the men's final.

Tony Parker leaving San Antonio for Charlotte
They need point guard depth behind Kemba Walker and Parker isn't a bad option on what is assuredly a low-money contract. After 17 seasons with the San Antonio Spurs , Tony Parker has reportedly agreed to a deal with the Charlotte Hornets .

J.K. Rowling calls out Donald Trump over typos
Harry Potter author J.K Rowling was one of the first to mock Trump, posting a series of tweets repeating hahahahahaha. So when Trump tweeted to boast about his "ability to write" on Tuewsday, Rowling couldn't help but howl in laughter.

EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt Resigns
But despite boasts of slashing red tape and promoting job creation, Pruitt had a mixed record of producing real-world results. He faced more than a dozen federal probes over such controversies, according to The Hill .

Tariffs on Chinese goods now in effect
President Donald Trump , accusing the White House of behaving like a " gang of hoodlums " as the deadline approached. America is the world's largest exporter of soy beans, and China is the world's largest consumer of them.

Chris Froome 'blocked from racing Tour de France'
Four-time victor Chris Froome has been blocked from registering for this year's Tour de France , according to reports. The Brit has been continued to compete despite the ongoing doping case against him and won the Giro D'Italia in May.

Even Oprah Winfrey follows this one wedding guest rule
To achieve her smoky eye, Martin said he used a chestnut eyeshadow and false lashes only on the outer edges of her lids. In the category, Meghan is up against the stylish likes of Zendaya, Blake Lively, Harry Styles, and Migos.